"...Even if we're really going to take over ORB, it should be after I've achieved some results. Otherwise, I'm afraid the parliament members will have strong objections."
Lu Tianming replied in a teasing tone. After all, Uzumi's attitude wasn't particularly serious at the moment, so he naturally chose a relatively relaxed style for his response.
"Hey, how can you—"
Seeing how smoothly Lu Tianming had taken up the topic, Cagalli's blush immediately deepened.
At the same time, she couldn't help but feel a secret joy in her heart—did his words mean he actually had feelings for her?
Uzumi felt somewhat helpless seeing his daughter's self-satisfied happiness. Judging by the situation, Tianming's response likely stemmed less from any affection for Cagalli and more from a genuine desire to accept ORB.
Of course, Uzumi was happy to see this development.
With Lu Tianming's abilities and vision, he shouldn't be limited to just the Archangel... even ORB's platform might be too small for him.
"The parliament is indeed troublesome, but if you can truly defend ORB in this battle, the situation should improve significantly."
"After all, I've been in ORB for many years and have cultivated my own faction."
As Uzumi answered with a smile, his eyebrows slightly furrowed as if he had thought of something problematic:
"However... while most of the other families have been behaving properly, one of them has been acting rather radical recently."
"I don't know if that junk dealer told you... The Sahaku family member piloting the Gold Frame attempted to destroy the Mass Driver to secure survival through compromise, but was discovered by the Red Frame that happened to be conducting recovery operations there."
Hearing this, Lu Tianming raised an eyebrow—he remembered this should be a plot from the side story manga?
Rondo Gina Sahaku, pilot of the Gundam Gold Frame... politically speaking, he recalled him being somewhat of an extreme hawk.
This guy's surprise attack on the Mass Driver did happen in the original story, but he was supposed to be repelled by Ro.
Overall, it shouldn't have affected the main storyline's progression, let alone the current situation.
"What, you're not going to tell me he actually damaged the Mass Driver, are you."
Lu Tianming said somewhat helplessly. This speculation was just a joke... if it were that serious, Uzumi would have mentioned it earlier.
Besides, Ro could fight him to a standstill in the original story, so there's no reason he couldn't handle him now.
"Quite the opposite... he was killed by the Red Frame during the attack."
Uzumi said with a headache. This was what truly troubled him now.
Lu Tianming was somewhat stunned, but after Uzumi's explanation, he seemed to understand something.
Due to various interferences with the original plot, Ro in this worldline didn't know Gina.
Whether it was the first battle sparked by the mutual attraction between Gundam pilots in the original work, or the second encounter and subsequent clash during their meeting at the Dawn Organization... due to Tiger's massive order, Ro completely missed the trigger points for these plot developments.
To him now, the Gold Frame was more like an unidentified enemy mobile suit—especially since the Gold Frame had been modified beyond recognition of its original form, further preventing Ro from associating it with ORB.
So when he saw this guy daring to attack ORB's Mass Driver, Ro immediately engaged with his armed mobile suit.
Thanks to the Aerial Combat Backpack, the Manta Ray pedal, and the Red Frame itself having been tuned by both Kira and Lu Tianming, the mobile suit's performance had significantly improved compared to its original version.
Thus, when facing the Gold Frame, Ro—with support from the Homestead—managed to valiantly shoot it down.
Although Ro didn't know the pilot's true identity, perhaps feeling uneasy about having killed someone... he guiltily reported the incident quietly to Uzumi.
After conducting an investigation, Uzumi eventually uncovered Giné's identity.
After hearing Uzumi's explanation, Lu Tianming felt a wave of helplessness... This guy had ended up dead ahead of schedule because of his own interference in events—truly rather tragic.
But it wasn't a big deal... After all, if he didn't die now, he'd probably die later anyway.
The only problem with him dying now, though, was...
Lu Tianming fell silent for a long moment, as if pondering the situation, before looking at Uzumi:
"Does the Sahaku family know about this?"
Lu Tianming made a simple deduction: Given that Giné was either the heir or the head of the family, such a person abruptly going "missing" shouldn't go completely unnoticed.
"Not yet. Since Giné Sahaku often enjoyed piloting the Gold Frame to intervene in various battlefields, his family currently just thinks he's off on another battlefield and hasn't returned yet, as has happened before."
Uzumi shook his head and relayed the truth of the matter to Lu Tianming.
"In fact, the only people who know about this right now are you, me... and Cagalli. To prevent ORB from facing turmoil during this critical phase, I've simply let that junk dealer carry on as if nothing happened."
Uzumi had initially meant to say only the two of them... but then suddenly remembered his foolish daughter was also present, listening in.
Hearing this, Lu Tianming nodded:
"That's the right move. After all, very few people know the Gold Frame was taken down... at most, Ro and his crew. As long as they don't talk, this matter won't cause trouble for a while."
"But what worries me is what happens after that 'while'."
Uzumi seemed to have been encouraged by Lu Tianming's earlier speech and had started to believe ORB could survive longer; he was even beginning to consider future developments.
"Sooner or later, this matter won't stay hidden for long. Once the Sahaku family realizes they've lost contact with Giné for too long, they'll inevitably search for information through various channels."
"If that junk dealer's identity as the killer is discovered, and it leads back to you for recruiting him, things could get messy."
Uzumi brought this up now primarily out of concern that it might affect Lu Tianming's future prospects.
Whether the Sahaku family would rebel or not... he didn't really care much about that. Or rather, a rational interest group wouldn't openly betray ORB over such matters.
Upon hearing this, Tianming silently pondered for a moment.
Under normal circumstances, this would indeed be a problem... But after carefully considering the original plot, he realized there might still be opportunities.
In fact, by seizing the initiative... he might even be able to pull the Sahaku family into their alliance.
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